Restaurants Around the World

Astrid & Gastón, Lima, 4/22/16

This large place is located in an old mansion and has several dining rooms for the two tasting menus, one for a la carte dining, a bar area as well as a test kitchen and rental space. Lots of interesting art decorates the walls, there are purse stools, fancy linens and dishes, and a couple amuse bouche as well as extra desserts sereved- if Michelin gets to Lima they want to be noticed. My understanding is that they really got the fine dining movement started in Lima and in the tasting area rooms it is a nicely dressed crowd enjoying their services. It was definitely more casual in the a la carte room, which also has a separate kitchen. Did I mention the place is large???

on the outside staircase

We got the longer of the tasting menus and chose our own bottles of wine rather than the wine pairings that they offered. One other feature of note was the bathroom that was a huge round circle, half of which housed men and the other half was women. The doors are actually curved and the other interesting feature is the small man or woman symbol located on the ceiling light fixture to indicate which side to go on. The staff were pleasant and very attentive and spoke great English. We were lucky to have Corina, a fellow cat lover, as our server. In a slight variation to my usual write up, I’ve included comments with the descriptions under each picture, but overall if you find yourself in Lima, give this place a try.

reception areadining roomFrankie napped on the purse stooldining room looking thru to baranother dining roommore casual dining roomanother roomsome kitchenmenu backwine menu 1wine menu 22 tasting menusFrankie played on the table decorationAmuse bouche: Chicken, sweet sauce and crisp rice crackerAmuse: as platedChilcano, traditional soup. Crunchy exterior with olive tasting liquid centerPork and cheese with veggies on top. Very crispyRye/sesame and white breadsBread spreads: Avocado (really tasty), tomato (smokey) and butterwhite wineCebiche limeño, catch of the day and aji limo. Fish was Covina with onions, chilies, corn and potato. Good flavors and no cilantroclose upCausa, smoked chicken, avocado, shallots in escabechedifferent viewclose upVegetarian cebiche, cauliflower leche de tigre, fresh and roasted vegetables of the day. The sauce was from cauliflower. It was very fresh and nice but not overwhelming. Full of good flavors but no cohesive taste.Scallops, Cesar’s leche de tigre, roasted lettuce, basil and tomatoes. Lots of parmesan cheese and basil. The bit of lettuce was grilled and crispy bread on top. It tasted more Italian, almost like a Caesar salad. Good.Camaron, chupe sauce, fava beans salad, mashed potatoes. Really different and fun taste. Chupe is broth and this was made from seafood.Confit cuy, yuca, rocoto hoisin, fall criolla sweet peanut. This was Guinea pig with crispy skin. It was quite savory. I could’ve eaten a pile of these!as platedanother angleFrankie found her mermaidOctopus, tomato water, lentil chimichurri and potato creamropes in the bathroombathroom podmark for ‘ladies’ – subtle!men’s bathroom markerFrankie found a swing in the bathroomCatch of the day, corn cream, vongoles juice, sweet potatoes, ham broth veil. Mild.as platedred wineDuck, corn, cress, membrillo. A little gritty and gummy – strange – but some how still was fun to eat.as platedfrom the sideEgg, smoked guanciale, spinach, baby ribs broth. Amazing textures – like the egg was fried after being poached but not at all greasy. Guanciale really tasty.Nikei beef cheek, stew and pickled raddish, miso juice, heliport. Served with Peruvian fried rice and you eat them together. It was a wonderful combination of flavors.as servedPeruvian fried riceChilcano, apples and mintLucuma, San Martin Coffee, tangerine. Very different tastes but really fun.as platedinsidebrought to the tableAdd chocolate sauceadding another sauceFinished product: Chocolate, lemon ice cream, oregano croutons, chocolate sauce. It was fun to play with the various combinations of flavors but not a killer dessert.Frankie wanted to help stir it upbox for bon bonsCrystalized hocolate bon bons, oregano bon bons, Chocolate caramel bon bonsCorina, our waitressFrankie thought there should be a catnip one